Free Electrified by Rachel Blaufeld, Pam Berehulke Page B

said, along with his cell phone number.
    Sienna put the note away. She couldn’t think about this now. She had to go back out and dance again soon, and she was pretty sure Asher would be showing up any minute to check on her. Mike had a big mouth, and Asher was already concerned. Shit .
    Locking the door, Sienna started to change her outfit for her next act. Unable to stop her thoughts from whether Carson was still out there, she began to choose a one-piece lace negligee with him in mind, and then caught herself.
    Wow. I’m losing it.
    Maybe she needed a little vacation? Perhaps a few days of R&R at one of the spa resorts near Red Rock Desert?
    She was obviously not herself with all this thinking about a man, dressing for said man, and that tiny part of her that was considering having coffee with that man.
    A little vacation was the answer.
    A moment later, Asher knocked on her door as she’d predicted. After a quick check to be sure she was “decent,” Sienna opened the door.
    Asher brushed past her and turned to confront her, his protective mode in full swing. “Sienna, are you okay, honey?” Before she could answer, he raked his blond hair off his forehead and frowned. “I’m always telling you to make some time for yourself and date, but let’s not get carried away with some guy from the audience. I know I told you it was natural to feel curious, but did you throw his number away?”
    Sienna tried not to sigh. Asher meant well; she knew that. But sometimes he went a little overboard with his big-brother act.
    So she smiled and, ignoring his question, said, “I’m good. Really, I am. I had a moment or something, I can’t explain it, but there was a thing with him. Something I never had before. A pull.”
    The look that flashed over Asher’s face looked suspiciously like pity. “Oh, doll, you’re so lonely. That’s it.”
    Sienna ignored the brief annoyance she felt at the thought of Asher pitying her, and did her best to mollify him. “I know, Ash. I’m all good now. It’s passed, whatever it was. I think I need a few days off. A little vacation will do me good.”
    His face brightened and he instantly perked up. “Sounds great, I can go with you. How about Tuesday? Wednesday? Mike can run the place.”
    She laughed. “Perfect. Thanks, Ash, love you. Just a little break, a night off will do me wonders.”
    “I know, doll. Now it’s time to dance and bring the house down, before we ride off into the sunset.”
    With a kiss to her temple, Asher headed back to his office, and she was left alone with the note again. No, she hadn’t thrown it out, and she wasn’t sure why. After all, there was nothing she could do with it.
    As much as she loved dancing and it was her ultimate relief, she needed to break away from this place for a day or so. Thank God for Asher and the upcoming getaway. She would go away with Asher, take a breather, and return home restored and renewed to live life. By herself.
    As for him, Carson, he was nobody to her. There was no “thing.” No pull. Only a big blip of loneliness filled with need and want, one that could never be filled.
    Taking a deep breath and allowing her mind to go blank, Sienna hit stage right before heading out to entice the crowd with nothing less than what they expected. They wanted to feel seduction and sex in the air, so that was what she would make them feel. The more charged the performance, the more anxiety relief Sienna felt—and the more sexually entranced she became.
    As she hit center stage, Sienna’s line of vision locked with Carson’s, and her moment of relief was lost.
    She’d only learned his name less than an hour ago, but she felt like it had been on her tongue for years. Carson. He watched her intently, as always. He didn’t smile like earlier, but his eyes bore down on her with a look she had never experienced. Want? Intimate need?
    How would her name sound coming off this tongue? Sienna…Lila. She wasn’t even sure of her own name.